Pope Shenouda III, head of the Coptic Christian Church in Egypt, has died. Shenouda III had led the Coptic Church through several periods of turmoil in Egypt, including the ongoing Egyptian Revolution. Coptics represent a small religious minority in present-day Egypt and their position in Egyptian society has been made more precarious by the instability in Egypt since the beginning of the Arab Spring movements.
NPR covers the legacy of Shenouda III and the current situation of Coptic Christianity in Egpyt.
Northern Illinois University students in HIST 420 The Renaissance and HIST 458 Mediterranean World, 1450-1750 will recognize the references to Saint Mark’s evangelization in Egypt from our study of Gentile and Giovanni Bellini’s Saint Mark Preaching in Alexandria (c. 1507).
NIU graduate students from HIST 640 Religious Violence in Comparative Perspective will also be interested in this story.
Brian Sandberg: Historical Perspectives 